Fulton County Department of Water Resources is committed to protecting your health and providing our customers with safe drinking water. We now have the technology to detect very low levels of substances found in our drinking water source, the Chattahoochee River. These substances include pharmaceuticals and personal care products.

While research has not demonstrated human health impacts from these compounds, the ongoing conversation should remind us of how precious our source waters are and the need to protect them from harmful substances. The best and most effective way to ensure safe water at the tap is to keep our Chattahoochee River clean.

The Federal Office of National Drug Control Policy recommends NOT flushing prescription drugs down the toilet. Even though our wastewater treatment processes are very advanced, not all of the chemical compounds found in medications are removed from the wastewater.

Following the recommended methods for properly disposing of pharmaceuticals can keep these substances out of our waterways.

• Never flush medications down the toilet!
• Free drop off locations across Georgia.
• Contact your pharmacy to ask if they will take back unused/expired medications for disposal.
• Contact your local police department to learn about upcoming drug take-back programs. Many police departments have partnered with the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) to keep unused prescription medications off of the streets and out of the hands of young people in your household.
• If you cannot take them to a drop off location, mix tablets and/or liquid medicines in a plastic bag with something very undesirable, such as used cat litter, coffee grounds, dish soap, or anything unpalatable. This mixture can be placed in regular household trash.

What to Drop:

• expired or unused meds
• pet meds
• medicated ointment
• inhalers
• unopened epi-pens
• liquid meds

Leave medication in original package.   Cross out your name and address.   Please do not cover up the name of the medication.  






Free drop off locations in Fulton County:

Downtown:
Fulton County Jail Visitation Trailer
(white trailer with wooden ramp at base of parking lot)
901 Rice Street
Atlanta, GA   30318

Fulton County Courthouse (2 locations)
185 Central Avenue, SW
and
136 Pryor St, SW
Atlanta, Ga   30303

Fulton County Government Center (2 locations)
141 Pryor St, S.W.
and
130 Peachtree St, SW
Atlanta, GA   30303

Fulton County Juvenile Courthouse
395 Pryor St, SW
Atlanta, GA   30312



South Fulton:
Union City/Fulton County Jail
6500 Watson St
Union City, GA   30291

Fulton County South Service Center
5600 Stonewall Tell Road
College Park, GA   30349


North Fulton:
Fulton County Jail/Alpharetta Annex
2565 Old Milton Parkway
Alpharetta, GA   30004

Fulton County North Service Center
7741 Roswell Road
Atlanta, GA   30350